For many people, becoming a permanent resident is an important goal. They view getting a green card as an achievable ambition and hope to live in the United States permanently, even if they think that attaining citizenship is not a realistic dream.
Those who become permanent residents only have to file paperwork to renew their status once a decade, in most cases. However, even permanent residents have limitations on their rights and some degree of risk of removal from the country. It is only through naturalization or the process of becoming a United States citizen, that immigrants obtain the strongest possible protection and obtain the full rights of a citizen.
Many immigrants feel like they cannot become citizens because of the interview and testing requirements. They probably worry that they will fail the test. Despite such fears, many permanent residents meet the requirements to become citizens.
The failure rate for immigrants is very low
Often, immigrants view the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in an adversarial manner. However, in some ways, the USCIS can be very supportive of immigrants. For example, there are study resources provided that help people acquire the vocabulary likely to come up in the English language test and learn all of the questions used in the Civics testing process.
Those resources lead to a very high success rate during the naturalization testing process. According to the data provided by the USCIS, of those granted a naturalization interview in 2021, 89.5% of immigrants pass during the initial interview. Another 6.6% of applicants passed after re-taking the exam.
The right support can make all the difference
Too many people settle for green cards when they could become full-fledged United States citizens. Immigrants need to understand when they qualify for naturalization and also how to prepare for the testing process. The support of a professional throughout this process and it’s a major difference both in how stressful the experience is for the immigrants and for their likelihood of success.
Learning more about naturalization testing may motivate some permanent residents to start preparing for the test. Should they have questions about the naturalization process at any point, they can always seek assistance from an experienced legal professional who practices immigration law.
